Tag Archives: Genesis 1:26

Grave Lessons from Angels – How Their Example Serves as Our Warning

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Fallen angels lived in the glory of God from the time of their creation. They dwelt in the presence of God, they worked in the presence of God, and they lived in the presence of God. They were exposed to attributes you and I have not yet been exposed to much less allowed to entertain; therefore, once they rebelled against God, they were without mercy and unable to retain it because of their acquired knowledge. Angels have been exposed to secret places and in some events the deeper things of God that very few have ever seen. Clearly, their request for forgiveness was unjustified as they had absolutely no excuse for rejecting the goodness of God and then conniving to usurp authority over Him. Their rebellion was indeed blasphemy in the truest sense of the word.

Because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse (Romans 1:19-20).

While the above scripture is speaking to mankind’s rejection of Jesus and the power of His Holy Spirit, this is an eternal declaration and it also applies to the angelic. Gross rebellion is difficult but still redeemable for mankind after repentance and surrender to God’s authority; but woe to the one who has rebelled against the goodness of God after dwelling in the divine presence of God and regularly tasting of the divine. This scripture is speaking specifically to the mature in Christ, those who have an established foundation in the deeper things of Christ. The scripture in the Book of Hebrews states it this way:

For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame (Hebrews 6:4-6).

The preceding verses in this passage of scripture list for us what is considered rudimentary in the kingdom of God from a learning perspective:

Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of instruction about washings and laying on of hands, and the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment (Hebrews 6:1-3).

The above verses are essentially the basics of Christianity 101 and every believer should have this foundation established in their personal walk with God; as no one can move into deeper maturity unless they have established these fundamental principles to doctrinal understanding.

Although men and women didn’t have access to the throne of God like the angelic before the foundation of the earth, we do indeed have access to the throne of God now. Jesus has made it possible for you and me to have intimate fellowship with the Father. He paved the way for you and me to receive mercy for our shortcomings and forgiveness our own rebellion by becoming sin for us. Our knowledge of God and His Holy Spirit are acquired here, in this dispensation, on this earth; whereas angels had their opportunity in the heavenlies; but just as each group—mankind and the angelic—have each been given their position of assignment, both groups have also been given specific perimeters by which to live. We could say the angels learned to worship God while in heavenly places; while mankind learns how to worship God here on earth. Each group has its destiny and each group has the ability to accept or reject God’s will. So while some may think God’s decision to permanently reject the fallen angels is extreme, we know it is not at all extreme based upon the conditions by which the angels were allowed to live. So if the angles had free will and yet suffered the consequences of rebellion, then how much more will we as men and women suffer the consequences of rebellion against God being made in the very image of God? (Genesis 1:26).

We didn’t have the opportunity to move in diverse realms of glory or taste of the divine goodness of God like the angles did in Heaven; we were hidden in the Father before the foundation of this world; but through our assignments here on earth, we have the opportunity to acknowledge the goodness of God and learn to embrace what is holy. As we learn to obey the instructions of the Father as they are written in His Word, we too can partake of the divine nature of God if we allow Holy Spirit to mature us through the working of His might power. Consequently, just as the angles were without excuse for their rebellion against God in Heaven, we too are without excuse if we reject God’s goodness while here on earth.

Rebellion is a serious issue and one God addresses with all who refuse to accept His sovereignty, whether they are human or angelic. He is the creator, we are the created. He is the potter, we are the clay, and while God does give us free will to choose between light and darkness; goodness and evil; He also has the right to eternally excommunicate anyone who attempts to usurp His authority. After all, are we God? Do we have the ability to sustain the dimensions of the universe, holding each layer in the palms of our hands? Do we have the ability to create the human form, decorate the expanse of the earth with our own paintbrush, or establish the parameters of the oceans and their borders? We can’t even calculate the amount of stars in the skies much less create anything. We can only observe and discover through research and study what is available to us through those things God has released from His very heart. We have the cars we drive because God released our ability to design them in His time, as He willed, for His purposes. We create nothing. He truly is the beginning and the end; what a humbling revelation.

So let’s remember to give God the respect He is due and let’s not pity angles that chose to reject the awesome greatness of God and stirred up rebellion in the heavenlies creating such gross division. God hates division; and all rebellion does is divide and separate us from God’s very best. And while we are to pray for men and women who may be under the spell of rebellion, we are never to show pity for the angles of God that lived in the presence of His Divine Glory then chose to reject His authority. There is never redemption for any who have been enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come (Hebrews 6:4-6) and then rebelled against that glory. Take a lesson from the angels; there is no path of repentance for anyone who dwells in the secret places of God’s glory then chooses to embrace rebellion.

Yes We Can Be Holy

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Yes, we can live holy lives. We ask God to forgive and He does; not only does he forgive, but He remembers our sin no more (Hebrews 8:12). The scripture says be ye holy for I am holy (1 Peter 1:16). If it wasn’t possible to be holy then God wouldn’t have commanded us to be holy as He is holy. It is possible. We often hear some people say, “I am a just sinner saved by grace.” There are two schools of thought at play here: (1) I am a sinner and (2) I am saved by grace. We are either one or the other, we cannot be both. Sweet and bitter water cannot come forth from the same fountain. If we are redeemed by the blood of Jesus after repenting of sin, we are under grace; we are no longer under the bondage of sin. Once we’re under grace, we remain under grace and we are told to remain under grace; for God has made us a new creature in Christ; behold, old things have passed away and now we are new (2 Corinthians 5:17).

It is “religion” that keeps people at the cross after accepting salvation. It is “religion” that keeps people in bondage to the past—in bondage to the old man. When we become born-again we are washed in the blood of the Lamb and the old man is cleansed, he is renewed. We are no longer under the bondage of the old—we are no longer just a sinner saved by grace; we become new men in Christ Jesus and therefore, we should walk as new men and women in God. Yes, before we accepted Jesus we were merely sinners; but now we are the redeemed of the Lord (1 Corinthians 6:20) and the law of sin and death no longer applies (Romans 8:2). We are no longer under the curse of sin (Galatians 3:13) for Christ has redeemed us from the curse, being made a curse for us; so now we have the privilege of grace and grace is where we are supposed to remain after we have received God’s precious gift of the cross. We are not to return to the cross every time we have a misstep. We are to go directly to the Father for restoration when we fall short of the glory.

So how do we live holy once we understand we are no longer slaves to sin but we are redeemed to grace? We live according to the instruction of the Word. We accept that we are no longer strangers to the great gospel of grace but now we are grafted into the Family of God (Romans 11:17); and we walk in our title as Children of the Most High. That’s the first step. The second step is to speak the Word. Our words are powerful, we must be careful about what we say—what we confess. We have to go from reading the Word to speaking the Word over our lives. Even medical science has taught us that positive confession has a definite impact on a person’s attitude and character. Positive confessions and positive affirmations foster an environment of victory, whether a person is saved or unsaved. If we hear something often enough it takes root in our soul and when we saturate ourselves in God’s information, then we begin to develop godly character; that information promotes an environment of confidence and we will naturally gravitate towards dispositions and attitudes that reflect godliness. Righteousness, joy and peace in the Holy Ghost are attributes of people who have developed holiness in their walk with God (Romans 14:17). The fruits of this holiness are love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). These fruits are the evidence of holy living.

If we are made in Their image (Genesis 1:26) and through the sacrifice of Jesus we are grafted into the family of God, then we do indeed possess the ability to live holy and thus we are no longer old sinners saved by grace. We are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21); and if we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, then His DNA runs through our veins and thus His disposition and attitude runs through our spirit. Glory! If a Believer can only see themselves as an ole sinner, they will struggle to accept this truth. It is only after we really understand who we are in Christ that we can begin to allow ourselves to see ourselves the way He sees us: as a holy people, a royal priesthood, (1 Peter 2:9), a member of The Family. Hallelujah! What wonderful news! What an amazing God we serve! This is such great news saints! So let’s not become weary in well-doing. Let’s continue to “work” the Word of God in our lives and see ourselves as He sees us. We are under grace and grace gives us the capacity to receive the finished work of Jesus Christ at the cross. Once we leave the cross, we are members of the Royal Family of God and membership has its privileges. We are indeed capable of being holy like Jesus, our sample Son. We can be holy and live holy because He has made us worthy to sit in high places with Him (Ephesians 2:6).

Let us get rid of the “religious” spirit that has held us in bondage, and take our rightful place as son’s and daughters of the Most High God and begin to speak holiness over our lives. Be persistent to do this and when the enemy tries to come against your thinking, remind him of who you really are—you are the righteousness of God through Christ Jesus, you are no longer a slave to sin. Some days it may not look like we’re the righteousness of God; after all, trials will come and we can sometimes fall into old thinking patterns, but we must bear in mind what HE says about us in the Word. In our own perspective, we may not see ourselves as a holy people and a royal priesthood, but from God’s perspective, we are the righteousness of God through Christ Jesus; and therefore, we can be holy.

We must continue reading the Bible; confessing God’s Word over our lives; praying in the Holy Ghost; and making changes to our speech and to our understanding as God develops our faith from glory to glory. Yes, we can live a holy life, but it begins by understanding who we are in Jesus so Holy Spirit can be given full reign to shape and develop our character in a way that produces godly results. The Bible says, “He who is able to bridle his tongue and not offend in word and deed is perfect” (James 3:2). The scripture doesn’t say here that controlling the tongue is impossible; however, we must realize it takes time to develop Biblical thinking patterns that reflect God’s character in us. It will happen if we do not give up on the process. Controlling what comes out of our mouth is critical to having the victory over old mindsets. We must ask Holy Spirit to show us where we may be speaking words of negativity and death over our lives and He will correct us. It will take time to get the flesh “under” the obedience of the Word, but we cannot return to broken thinking. If we have a misstep, we must quickly repent and get back on track with what the Word of God says about us. The Bible says, “Let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” (James 1:4). It’s doable saints; we can have whatsoever we desire when we pray if we believe (Mark 11:24) and we know Jesus desires that we walk like Him in ‘word’ and in ‘deed’. So praise God! With Him truly ALL things are possible! Let’s seek to be holy like Jesus and trust God with the process; we are no longer sinners; we are indeed saved by grace.